first time trip w/4 y.o. dd

[winemedineme]

and i need some serious help. i've only been to disney once and it was when i was 17. now dh and i, along with dd (4) are planning a rather soon trip due to a last minute conference dh has to go to in orlando. here's my questions, and any help is GREATLY appreciated since our trip is so soon. the dates we'll be at disney are checking in Tues. 2/28 and we'll be there for 3 or 4 days. we want to stay in the disney park, i see a bunch of people saying they're staying at "POP, etc.", what does this mean? is there somewhere anyone could recommend that we should stay at with a 4 yr. old. I really want to have her do a princess breakfast or lunch. people have suggested that as far as parks with her we should stick to MK, MGM studios, and seaworld. DH wants to also do a water park. would that be typhoon lagoon and is it geared for 4 y.o. sorry for all the questions but he just sprung all this on me so my heads spinning. also, we have AAA. am i better off just going thru them with all the planning? can i get good deals on in the park hotels, tickets and princess dining? again, any help and advice is appreciated greatly!!
~ kim

 

[winemedineme]

lol

 

[Minnie824]

We just took our DDs aged 4 and 1.5 on their first trip in Nov. Please let me know if you have any specific questions, or I'll try to answer yours. POP is pop century resort. Theres 3 categorys, value (pop is one of these), moderate, and deluxe. Depending on how much you want to spend, go from there, and then visit the resort board to get some pros/cons for each.

As for the parks...we actually didn't spend much time in MGM, and we won't be visiting there most likely on our next trip. Definitely magic kingdom, 2 days even if you can. Other than that, if you're only visiting one other park, I'd say Animal Kingdom or Epcot. Your DD may be tall enough for most rides. Mine was over 40" so she went on Splash Mtn, Big Thunder Mtn, Test Track, Dinosaur, anything she could. I'm not really familiar with Sea World, as we just stayed on property for their first trip. They really liked Animal Kingdom though. They also loved the parades, and we did the nap in the afternoon.

It will probably be hard for you to get reservations to eat in the castle now, but try, and if not, try for Akershus in Epcot also. Please let me know if you have any more questions!

 

[Kae]

As far as Char Meals go the Caslte is more than likely booked. Cinderella is at 1900 Park Faire at the Grand Floridian for Dinner. We enjoy Crystal Palace at MK it is Pooh & Friends & they serve all 3 meals. Cape May for Breakfast at the Beach Club is also very good.

We took DS when he was 4 & had a blast. I think you should pick up some guide books. PassPorter is very good & we also like the 2 Birmbaums one is for kids. I think those are the best ones for first timers.

Kae

 

[geena]

I really liked MGM studios for kids. They have (or at least had when we went in 2003) Bear in the Big Blue House stage show, The Little Mermaid show, the Muppet Show, and in the back lot, tons of characters from kids shows. Maybe the rides are not that great for kids, but the shows were wonderful.

I also heard there is a Princess lunch somewhere at Epcot. You might want to check allearsnet for more info. on that.

As for water parks, we love Blizzzard Beach. You might want to check the height restrictions though before you go.

Have a GREAT TIME!!

 

[smsnorthup]

We also have a DD4 and she has enjoyed something from every park. MK is a must. But don't rule out AK. We haven't been to a water park yet..and you may want to get opinions on whether it will be warm enough for that. As far as Princess Character meals...I would have to agree with a previous post to say your probably too late for CRT(the castle), but defintely try for the restaurant in Norway at epcot for Princess breakfast or Lunch(a little easier to get into than the castle) and while your trying for a ressie just ask them to check CRT for any availability. My DD loves the afternoon parades to see alot of characters. MK and MGM are especially good to see the princesses. Hope this helps!!

 

[T-i-double-g-err]

As far as parks go, we went when our DDs were 5 and 2.5, respectively. As already stated, MK is a must. We spent most of our time in Fantasy Land and Mickey's Toontown Fair. I'd put AK and MGM next and would order them based on the childrens' interest in animals versus interest in Playhouse Disney/Muppets. We did not have much luck with Epcot until our trip earlier this month. DD6 and DD8.5 went with me and DM to Epcot while DW took DS to AK.

On the character meals, I'd definitely add a vote for either CRT or Akershus for princess interaction. Chef Mickey's is also a good one, particularly on a day where you will not enter the parks as it's at the Contemporary hotel; Mickey, Donald, Goofy, Chip and Dale were in attendance. We did this one for dinner on the day we arrived. We got to WDW in the afternoon and did not want use a ticket for a short day.

On the resorts question, I'd recommend that you jump over to the Resorts board and just start reading. Once you get a feel, you can start asking some specific questions there that may assist you with your accomodations decision.

Have a wonderful trip!

 

[TweetieSC4]

Welcome to the DIS! Let me say that this is probably the best place to go for planning tips and info. I practically lived on this site at night! My husband thought I was nuts until our trip last Sept with our DS (4). It was about as perfect as it could be thanks to all of the wonderful info I rec'd from people here on these boards. There is nothing like taking your child to WDW on their first trip!

I highly recommend staying onsite. If you are only going to be at Disney for 3 or four days, I would truly suggest trying to put off Sea World and the water parks for another trip. If you do go to a water park, Typhoon Lagoon is a great choice with a child. Just make sure you check any scheduled refurbishments/closures for your trip dates (allearsnet.com has that info, or check with Disney) You will be so busy with the parks! Trust everyone's recommendations to go back to the hotel for a break. As I mentioned, my DS was 4 and he really benefitted from the nap (so did DH and I). Trust everyone who recommends you rent a stroller for your child. We didn't and by midday on Day 2 my son was CRANKY! I immediately got a stroller, and didn't have one problem after that point. With a 4yo, we found it much easier to rent at the parks rather than drag one on the bus. A 4yo doesn't need a special padded stroller, and they are old enough to walk from the front of the park to a bus at the end of the day (if they rode instead of walked all day) It was our first trip with a child, and I was really impressed with the ease of stroller rental. I was nervous that it would be a pain to park for rides/shows and then pick up, but it was really easy. We had a neon green mister fan that we tied onto the handle and laid on top of the canopy. It made spotting our stroller so easy.

I highly recommend planning 2 days at MK and a visit to MGM. MGM should really only take you 1/2 a day, so try to get in AK or a visit to EPCOT. I can go on and on about what to see and do in the parks. Just private message me and I'll be happy to give you recommendations for a 4yo. In general, you might want to go to MK in the morning, have lunch in the park and head back to your resort about 2pm. Take a nice 2 hour break or so. We swam in the pool or napped (or both). I journaled about what we did and read while my son slept. It was some great "mommy time" that I don't get at home. We headed back to the park and had dinner and hit some more attractions. We were well rested for the fireworks shows at the end of the night. We tried to go to the park having the extra magic hours on the nights they were available. We went in mid-Sept when crowds were low (might be the same for you in Feb) so we got a lot out of EMH nights. It was like having a private party in the parks. All of the rides were practically walk on. One of my life's greatest memories will be the EMH night at MK when my DH was feeling sick and just my DS and I went back. We took a really long nap that day and ended up staying at the park until it closed at 1am. We went on so many rides, got an entire boat on Splash Mtn to ourselves, and were the last two people to say goodnight to Mickey and Minnie in front of the castle (I can't believe I forgot my camera - bad mom!) It was truly magical. We planned the day we did MGM to go to Epcot for their EMH night. We did MGM for the Playhouse Disney show, Beauty and the Beast, Voyage of the Little Mermaid, etc. an then after dinner and the Fantasmic Show we took the bus straight over to EPCOT and went on Test Track, Soarin', Mission Space, boat ride in Mexico and Norway, etc. (That is a great way to get in EPCOT. Most kids at 4 aren't that interested in World Showcase, and it might be better for a later trip). There is princess dining in Norway, so you might want to try and fit that in. If you can't get in to the Cinderella breakfast at MK, we did the dinner and met Cinderella on her throne in the bottom of the castle. That was a great alternative.

Something to consider if you want to see more than one resort is to eat dinner at one of the deluxe resorts. We ate at AKL and then walked out the back of the hotel to look at the animals on the Savannah. We ate at Kona Cafe at the POLY and then walked out onto the beach to view the electrical water pageant on the lake. There are so many things that you can do to maximize your vacation.

Sorry to ramble on and on... Hope this is helpful. Feel free to private message me with any questions! Have a fantastic trip!